Oregon Uses Second Half Push To Pull Away From Oregon State, 80-59

If Oregon State (5-26) could salvage anything from this year’s demoralizing regular season, it would probably have been a victory on Senior Day in Corvallis against Oregon. A potential win not only would’ve split the Civil War season series with the Ducks but it also would’ve prevented Oregon from winning their second straight Pac-12 Championship. Unfortunately for Oregon State’s sake, that chance came and went after forty minutes at Gill Coliseum, when the Ducks used a strong second-half push to hold off the Beavers, 80-59.

Oregon (27-4) was led all game-long by star playmaker Dillon Brooks, who followed up an efficient first-half (12 points on 5-8 FG), to finish with a game-high 25 points. Brooks was one of four Ducks who finished in double-figures, accompanied by guard Casey Benson (14 points) and forwards Jordan Bell (13 points) and Chris Boucher (12 points). As a group, the Ducks meticulously picked apart a lackluster Oregon State defense, shooting 51.8% overall from the field.

For Oregon State, the Beavers fell in love with the three-point shot early and never swayed from their perimeter-oriented ways, heaving up 27 long balls in the game despite connecting on just six tries. The Beavers also got to the free-throw stripe just seven times in the contest, a testament to the lingering issues this team has had all-season long. On the night, they were led by forward Drew Eubanks (21 points, 12 rebounds), who was arguably the fiercest competitor on the floor, regardless of the flow of the game. Guard Stephen Thompson Jr. (10 points) was the second leading scorer for Oregon State, despite an absymal 4-18 shooting display.

The Ducks will return to action on Thursday, March 9th in the Pac-12 Tournament as the #1 overall seed, where they will receive a first-round bye and play the winner of the #8/#9 seed game in the Quarterfinals.

Oregon State will be the #12 overall seed in the conference tournament, leaving them to match-up with the #5 seed in the First Round on Wednesday, March 8th.

The Pac-12 Tournament is presented by New York Life will take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada from March 8th-March 11th. The winner of the conference tournament will earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, regardless of their regular season finish. Oregon is the reigning champions of the Pac-12 Tournament, after defeating Utah in the 2016 final.